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The Frunk Puppy movement has been uniting the global EV community for 4 years. The Frunk Puppy movement has been uniting the global EV community for 4 years.

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The Frunk Puppy movement has been uniting the global EV community for 4 years.

Credit: Elon Musk

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Four years ago, a member of the United States Air Force put his puppy in the front trunk of his Tesla Model 3 and took a photo. It was a decision that ended up starting a movement that even Tesla CEO Elon Musk and his mother, Maye Musk, participated in: Frunk Puppy Friday.

The frunk trunk (frunk) of a Tesla and other EVs is where the engine would be in a typical internal combustion engine vehicle. Since Tesla doesn’t have an engine, the design team of the vehicles created a nifty storage space that is great for taking photos of pets. Other EV makers have followed suit.

The Frunk Puppy Friday movement is coming up on its four-year anniversary on August 18. Frunk Puppy Friday is a contest where EV owners put their pets in the frunks of their vehicles and take photos. Using the hashtag, #frunkpuppyfriday, they submit the photos to a Twitter contest. Every week, four photos are picked by the Frunk Puppy Board, and Twitter votes for the best one.

Interview with Dr. Earl Banning, the creator of Frunk Puppy Friday

It’s been four years of Frunk Puppy Friday and I asked Earl how felt about this upcoming anniversary.

“It’s pretty mind-blowing. As you know, I started to think about this idea after my wife’s brain hemorrhage and was in the hospital and it was just a real emotional time. People throughout the Tesla community were really helpful and being there over text messages, Twitter messages.”

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Earl wanted to do something for the Tesla community back in 2018. Back then, Tesla was struggling, the short selling and the ensuing misinformation about Tesla were intense and Earl just wanted to do something positive to bring balance.

Fighting FUD and facing the possibility of losing his wife to a brain aneurysm

Earl was inspired to fight for Tesla and to take part in combatting all of the fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) that was just continuous. And then the unthinkable happened. Earl’s wife had a brain aneurysm and almost died.

“There were a lot of short-sellers and there were a lot of people attacking everybody and Tesla wasn’t in great shape at times. It was a little rough.”

“I just didn’t feel like happy to argue. I needed something else. So what’s better than dogs and Teslas? I thought about how the frunk is special. So I was brainstorming and trying to figure out what I could do.”

“I like dogs so I put a dog in a frunk and came up with the word Frunk Puppy and it seemed to stick. And it wasn’t really until we were leaving the hospital after the second surgery that I put Norman in the frunk and took a picture.”

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The moment when Frunk Puppy began to take off

Earl shared his photo with his friends on Twitter and encouraged them to join him in taking photos of their puppies in frunks.

“It was really Trevor Page from Model 3 Owners who put his cat in the frunk and tweeted it,” Earl told me. Back then Earl’s account wasn’t as large as it is now but Trevor’s was. Once Trevor took a frunk kitty photo, the movement took off and people began taking photos of their pets in their frunks.

“It blew up around the world. There were entries from China and all over Europe, the U.S., Canada, and then of course, Maye Musk by October. I developed it in August and by October–Halloween–she put her dog in the frunk and that’s when things went totally bananas.”

Credit: Maye Musk

The Frunk Puppy movement began to take off so Earl began a contest. Many members of the Tesla community are also small business owners and were sponsoring prizes for the winners of the weekly poll.

“We had all these entries so I formed this little board of people to start voting on them. I wanted it to be a true democracy. I didn’t want to just pick it which I used to do. I wanted people to narrow it down to the top four and vote on Twitter.”

Frunk Puppy Is now 4 years old.

Earl expected the movement to eventually fade away as things do, but that isn’t happening anytime soon. The Frunk Puppy movement has become sort of a rite of passage for most EV owners who take photos of their pets in their frunks.

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Earl told me that the board gets 40-50 entries per month and that people really appreciate it.

“If I’m late at putting the vote up on Friday, I start getting all these messages from people. ‘Where’s the poll? It’s all I look forward to,’ type of messages. So there are definitely people who appreciate it. Hundreds of people vote every week. And it’s very light-hearted.”

“I always imagined it to be very agnostic. I didn’t want it to be a Tesla-only thing. I wanted it to raise awareness for EVs. My hope at the time was that all EVs would have frunk. It’s a great way to start a conversation about EVs and it’s an infectious hashtag to really point out EVs, clean energy, and no emissions. And look, you can put your dog in where the engine should be and take a picture. I think that’s so cool.”

“Early on, we had winners who had Nissan LEAFs and that grew over time where Lucid wrote ‘#FrunkPuppy’ and posted a photo with a dog in their frunk on Instagram. This was pretty cool because the cars hadn’t even come out yet.”

“Bollinger was a repeat winner many times in a row with their awesome frunk and Rivian has slipped right in. We had someone in the top 4 last week. We’ve had several Rivians now. But the Ford Lightning has really taken over. Two weeks ago, we had two of the top four with Ford Lightning. It’s just an enormous frunk. It’s perfect. People have dogs and trucks.”

How Earl felt when Elon Musk posted his Frunk Puppy Friday submission.

https://twitter.com/28delayslater/status/1446128079802286088?

Although Elon Musk didn’t use the hashtag #frunkpuppyfriday, with one tweet, Elon united the EV community, the Dogecoin community, and puppy lovers with one of the most adorable photos of a puppy in a frunk. I asked how Earl felt when Elon used something he created.

“I have a mug and it has three parts on it. The first part is Elon saying his dog’s name is Floki. The second one is of me saying ‘for the love of God put that dog in the frunk.’ The third part was him agreeing.”`

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‘And then he did it. He wrote the word Frunk Puppy which is really funny because he’s like the richest guy in the world taking time to put his dog in a frunk and post it. And of course, Floki won that year. He won that week and the year.”

“It was so incredible that Elon had taken the time to do that. It was such a silly ask and then he sees my tweet and agrees. And then he actually does it on time. He did it when he said he would do it. I was really overwhelmed.”

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Earl told me that EV owners across brands are submitting photos of their pets in frunks which is what he always wanted it to be.

The Future of Frunk Puppy

The way time has been flying, Frunk Puppy will be at its fifth anniversary. With that in mind, I asked Earl what he had in store for the future.

“I would like to have more participation across brands which I think will happen as more people buy EVs. I’m not a tech person and haven’t put the time into it, but one of my dreams is to take the voting off of Twitter and put it on my Frunk Puppy website because I feel like it’s a real disservice.

“You click the tweet and it’s such a tiny picture with poor resolution. What I would hope is that maybe even all of the pictures from the week are there and you just vote on the one you want. Or still do a top four but when you go onto the website you can see giant pictures. Some pictures are beautiful pictures but when you look at it on Twitter it’s lackluster.”

Earl also said he wouldn’t mind getting back to having prizes. When Covid-19 hit, a lot of small businesses suffered and closed down. He also said he would like to do more charity fundraisers. One issue he had with the prizes is that people wouldn’t want them. People were more interested in winning the Frunk Puppy Friday vote simply just to win.

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The community of Frunk Puppy

Earl loves seeing all the pictures every week and he’s proud of the movement.

“It’s just so cool to me that people do that and they’re so creative. I see people continue to really have fun with it. Sometimes, as I said, Twitter can be a bit of a downer but you see such a playful creative side to people where they’re decorating the inside frunk or dressing up their dog. They’re really having fun with it and to me, that means a lot.”

Earl told me that some pet owners would tell him when their dog or pet died and he’d do a one last Frunk Puppy picture in their honor.

“I tear up a little bit. It’s pretty cool that they send these to me. Over four years, there’s a lot of dogs that have won who aren’t with us anymore and I’ll do a memorial tweet or video.”

Helping Pets In Need.

One thing that Earl has done with the Frunk Puppy movement was help pets in need. In fact, this community helped save both of my cats when I found myself suddenly a new kitty mom. Tesla, (yes his name is Tesla as I am a fan) was found when he was eight days old and I had to bottle feed him.

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Peanut was brought to me by a neighbor who found her with glue poured all over her. Someone had not only put Peanut in a glue trap, but they tried to drown her in glue. We used an entire jar of peanut butter to get the glue out of her fur and it saved her life.

Earl told me that recently there was a cat found in a trash can with one eye. He needed surgery and that cat is fine now. It had the surgery, got adopted, and has a sibling with no eyes.

“Over the years I’ve used Frunk Puppy for charity. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I wish I could find ways to do that a little more formally because people are very generous and it’s a good awareness tool. Sometimes people will put a foster dog in their frunk and it gets a lot of tweets.”

“Another thing that I’m working on with Mother Frunker is that we’re going to take all the winners from the year and make a coffee table book. And then donate all the proceeds to charity. That’ll be the end of this year.”

The Frunk Puppy Friday movement has evolved over the past four years and is going strong. It’s inclusive for all EVs and all types of pets. Little Tesla was a winner when I submitted him in 2019.

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Although I don’t own a car, Tesla friends often drive through Baton Rouge and this was the perfect opportunity for a Frunk Puppy Friday submission and a way to let the Tesla community know that the kitty they helped to save was doing fine.

 

Disclaimer: Johnna is long Tesla. 

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I’d love to hear from you! If you have any comments, concerns, or see a typo, you can email me at johnna@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @JohnnaCrider1

 

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Tesla Cybertruck takes a bump from epic failing Dodge Charger

The Cybertruck seemed unharmed by the charging Charger.

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Credit: Hammer_of_something/Reddit

There comes a time in a driver’s life when one is faced with one’s limitations. For the driver of a Dodge Charger, this time came when he lost control and crashed into a Tesla Cybertruck–an absolute epic fail. 

A video of the rather unfortunate incident was shared on the r/TeslaLounge subreddit.

Charging Charger Fails

As could be seen in the video, which was posted on the subreddit by Model Y owner u/Hammer_of_something, a group of teens in a Dodge Charger decided to do some burnouts at a Tesla Supercharger. Unfortunately, the driver of the Charger failed in his burnout or donut attempt, resulting in the mopar sedan going over a curb and bumping a charging Cybertruck.

Ironically, the Dodge Charger seemed to have been parked at a Supercharger stall before its driver decided to perform the failed stunt. This suggests that the vehicle was likely ICE-ing a charging stall before it had its epic fail moment. Amusingly enough, the subreddit member noted that the Cybertruck did not seem like it took any damage at all despite its bump. The Charger, however, seemed like it ran into some trouble after crashing into the truck.

Alleged Aftermath

As per the the r/TeslaLounge subreddit member, the Cybertruck owner came rushing out to his vehicle after the Dodge Charger crashed into it. The Model Y owner then sent over the full video of the incident, which clearly showed the Charger attempting a burnout, failing, and bumping into the Cybertruck. The Cybertruck owner likely appreciated the video, in part because it showed the driver of the Dodge Charger absolutely freaking out after the incident.

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The Cybertruck is not an impregnable vehicle, but it can take bumps pretty well thanks to its thick stainless steel body. Based on this video, it appears that the Cybertruck can even take bumps from a charging Charger, all while chilling and charging at a Supercharger. As for the teens in the Dodge, they likely had to provide a long explanation to authorities after the incident, since the cops were called to the location.

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Anti-Elon Musk group crushes Tesla Model 3 with Sherman tank–with unexpected results

Ironically enough, the group’s video ended up highlighting something very positive for Tesla.

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Credit: Led By Donkeys/X

Anti-Elon Musk protesters and critics tend to show their disdain for the CEO in various ways, but a recent video from political action group Led By Donkeys definitely takes the cake when it comes to creativity.

Ironially enough, the group’s video also ended up highlighting something very positive for Tesla.

Tank vs. Tesla

In its video, Led By Donkeys featured Ken Turner, a 98-year-old veteran who served in the British army during World War II. The veteran stated that Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, is “using his immense power to support the far-right in Europe, and his money comes from Tesla cars.” 

He also noted that he had a message for the Tesla CEO: “We’ve crushed fascism before and we’ll crush it again.” To emphasize his point, the veteran proceeded to drive a Sherman tank over a blue Tesla Model 3 sedan, which, of course, had a plate that read “Fascism.” 

The heavy tank crushed the Model 3’s glass roof and windows, much to the delight of Led By Donkeys’ commenters on its official YouTube channel. But at the end of it all, the aftermath of the anti-Elon Musk demonstration ended up showcasing something positive for the electric vehicle maker.

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Tesla Model 3 Tanks the Tank?

As could be seen from the wreckage of the Tesla Model 3 after its Sherman encounter, only the glass roof and windows of the all-electric sedan were crushed. Looking at the wreckage of the Model 3, it seemed like its doors could still be opened, and everything on its lower section looked intact.

Considering that a standard M4 Sherman weighs about 66,800 to 84,000 pounds, the Model 3 actually weathered the tank’s assault really well. Granted, the vehicle’s suspension height before the political action group’s demonstration suggests that the Model 3’s high voltage battery had been removed beforehand. But even if it hadn’t been taken off, it seemed like the vehicle’s battery would have survived the heavy ordeal without much incident.

This was highlighted in comments from users on social media platform X, many of whom noted that a person in the Model 3 could very well have survived the ordeal with the Sherman. And that, ultimately, just speaks to the safety of Tesla’s vehicles. There is a reason why Teslas consistently rank among the safest cars on the road, after all.

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Tesla Model 3 driver is using FSD to travel to Mt. Everest Base Camp

The ambitious, nearly 4,000-kilometer (2,485-mile) Tesla FSD journey is being livestreamed on Chinese social media.

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Credit: Douyin 老高懂电车

Count on Tesla drivers in China to push Full Self Driving (FSD) as far as it could go. As could be seen in videos posted on Chinese social media, a brave Model 3 owner is currently going on an epic journey from Henan Province to the base camp of Mt. Everest on FSD.

Recent posts from the Model 3 driver suggest that the ambitious destination may be within reach.

Epic FSD Journey

As noted by Tesla owner-enthusiast Aaron Li, the journey from Henan Province to the base camp of Mt. Everest spans almost 4,000 kilometers (2,485 miles). The journey itself is epic, with stunning vistas and roads that require some drivers to bring oxygen canisters with them. The fact that it is being done using FSD makes it extra impressive. 

Based on the videos that have been recently shared, the Model 3 running FSD seems to be nearing the Everest Base Camp. There seems to be a good chance that the Tesla Model 3 may reach its destination this Friday.

Previous Everest Trips

This is not the first time that a Tesla has driven to Mt. Everest’s base camp.  That would be a Model 3 that was driven in September 2020. That vehicle, which went on a long 5,500 km (3,400-mile) journey, was manually driven to its destination. 

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In April 2021, Tesla China announced that it has completed the buildout of 11 Supercharger stations in the picturesque route from Chengdu to Tingri. This route would allow drivers to reach the base camp of Mt. Everest. Sure enough, in July 2022, Tesla China shared a video of two Teslas—a Model X and Model Y—reaching the Everest base camp without any issues. Numerous other Tesla drivers have since taken on the long, picturesque journey.

Check out this Tesla Model Y’s journey to the Mt. Everest base camp in the video below.

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